‘DEADLY BRIDGE DANGER STILL NOT SOLVED’

Inquest into tragedy told wrong-way near misses go on:

SAFETY improvements on a bridge used each day by thousands of motorists haven’t stopped near-misses involving confused motorists on the wrong side of the road, an inquest heard yesterday.

Last year, North West Wales senior coroner Dewi Pritchard Jones issued a report to prevent future deaths to the Welsh Government after the tragedy of pharmaceutical rep Elijah Shotade, 31, of Bilton, Rugby. He’d overtaken a lorry and car while crossing the Britannia Bridge (pictured), when he collided head-on with another lorry.

An inquest into Mr Shotade’s death at Caernarfon last week heard how he had reached a bend where he couldn’t return to his correct side of the road because of the crash barrier.

Mr Pritchard Jones said: “During the early hours of August 31 Mr Shotade was driving an Audi car along the A55 towards Holyhead. He should have pulled in before reaching the area of road where the two lanes on the Britannia Bridge widen to a dual carriageway. For some reason he didn’t return to his own lane though there was room for him to do so.

“He appears to have carried on in the eastbound lane as if that were the normal lane. He reached an area where he couldn’t return to his correct side because of the crash barrier and collided head-on with a vehicle coming in the opposite direction.”

The coroner said :”After overtaking, for some reason he appears to have been under the impression the correct way was to carry on in the east-going lane. He may or may not have had a sat-nav.

“I have noticed the sat-nav in my car when I am going along that road it tells me to bear right.”

Mr Shotade also had a partial blockage of a coronary artery. “It could have affected the flow of blood to Mr Shotade’s brain and affected his ability to deal with an emergency situation,” Mr Pritchard Jones said. “I have no evidence to confirm that.”

A conclusion of accidental death was recorded.

Following the tragedy, the coroner met with North Wales police traffic officers. There were concerns about the layout of the road, and about sat-nav directions.

Mr Pritchard Jones had contacted the Welsh Government. “There’s nothing more I can do. I leave it to others to assess whether what they have done has improved the road,” he added.

Inquest witness Robert Williams, who saw the tragedy and raised the alarm, told the coroner he’d seen similar mistakes made on several occasions.

He said: “The new measures aren’t working. Last March I nearly got killed. It’s still happening: I think they need to extend the barriers.”

Mr Pritchard Jones said the police had a list of incidents that haven’t resulted in crashes. Police collision investigator Emma Dainty said there was no fault with the Audi. “He appears to brake at the very last minute,” she said. “It suggests to me he was under the impression the way he was driving was correct.”

She said if Mr Shotade used Google Maps he could have been instructed to “bear right” when he crossed the bridge.